Five Brother: A Look Into The Past, Part 2 Unrated
by Jessie Halliwel
Summary: You will find this story in the T rated stories. But, later on chapters will call for an M rating. So, those of you allowed in M rated stories, feel free to read the unrated version.
1. Eve, The Football and Hat

(The five brothers, really four brothers and a sister, are back and ready to take over the streets of Detroit. Not that Bobby isn't doing that just fine by himself. I hope you guys like the update. I live for my fans.)

Okay, everybody still with me? Let's go over things one more time, just in case you haven't been paying me the least bit of attention. That's code for: You better have not missed a damn thing.

**Past:** We got Jack back from his perverted father and brother; but only after the abuse had drilled into his brain. Jack developed the well-known hobby known as 'cutting'. Yet, Mom was on top of the situation and dealt with it the way only she could.

The cops were trying to pin Dan and Conner's murders on my brothers. Yeah, I know they did it. But, that'll just be our little secret. Shhhh!

Jack's getting adopted! Mom sprung it on him. That can only make you believe that she offered the adoption to me too. I accepted, of course. What, do you think I'm on crack? And I don't want to hear one quip about me being a crack addict.

**Present:** I was an ex-junkie, ex-eating disorder patient with four older brothers. The oldest was a dangerous, merciless, vengeful killer with the greatest devotion for his family you've ever witnessed in history. You can pretty much figure that to be Bobby. Another was his former right hand man turned family man, with a wife and two daughters; as well as substitute family therapist for his odd siblings. Gotta love Jerry for his efforts. Third was another ex-something; marine this time. He was best known as the pretty boy, having a testy Latina that could hold her own permanently fixed to his boner. Are you reading this Angel? My thirteen-year-old sister Jayla moved in with us. Blah, blah, blah. We don't need to talk about the brat; meaning that I'd punch the next person I came across if I thought about her at the moment. Yeah, you know who you are, Detroit's most wanted hooker.

Sorry. I'm talking too much again. I'm just a big family person, if you haven't noticed. Why the hell do you think I'm writing our memoirs? I know it ain't for my health. If my brothers knew what I wrote in my journal (Bobby's calls it a diary), then I'd never hear the end of it. You work hard enough to be accepted as one of the bros, mannish behavior goes along with that. Besides, could you imagine what the hell they'd say if they actually did get a hold of my journal? Let's just say, Bobby might just switch the role of 'target of taunting' from Jack to me. I twitch at the thought.

My brothers should be coming back from Johnny's bar soon. I better hide this journal after my next entry.

"Sammy," came the voice of the only other person in the house besides me.

Jerking my gaze up to look at Jayla as she stood in the bedroom door, I said, "You call me that one more time and I'm gonna knock you right down those stairs with my baseball bat."

"But, Bobby calls you Sammy," my sister argued. She always had to pick a fight.

"That's because he's Bobby. He allowed to do a lot of things he shouldn't," I scoffed.

"Like shooting people?"

"Uh-huh," I hummed, quickly jotting in my notebook about Jayla's disturbing need to point out everybody else's issues when she was less than perfect herself.

"So, is he an assassin? He's got tons of guns."

Jayla was parked on the bed at my feet now; crossing her legs and grinning like we were best friends. Wasn't it only a few weeks ago that she said she hated me and that I was ruining her reputation? If she wasn't careful, she wouldn't make it to her next birthday. I'd make sure of that.

"Bobby's no assassin. This is Detroit, Jay. How many guys have you seen running around with berrettas tucked in their pants? Everywhere you turn, right?"

Jayla nodded with a look on her face that she only got when we talked. She felt stupid when she asked a question and I came back at her with a snappy reply or if I corrected her. I wouldn't be so mean to her if she hadn't been a bitch to me first. Did she think I wanted our sisterhood to end up this way?

"Hold up. I thought you had Eve with you," I said, referring to my cat; whose name I'd shortened from Evelyn to Eve when I realized it was weird to pet something that had the same name as my mom.

"I did," Jayla said and shrugged as she played with the bracelets on my wrists.

I smacked her hand away to make her focus. "So, where is she?"

"I put her outside to let her chase a mouse she was going nuts about," Jayla answer with a wave of her hand, not paying me much attention.

The instant she mentioned that my cat was outside, I was on my feet and my hand connected with the side of her head.

"What'd you do that for?" Jayla hissed, rubbing the lump I gave her.

"You don't put Eve outside! She's an indoor cat!" I yelled in the middle of a mad dash for the stairs. I had to find Eve and fast.

"You should have told me that," Jayla muttered, right behind me.

"I didn't think I'd have to. You said that you only wanted to hold her. Not toss her out like garbage."

"I didn't toss her out. She was fine when I put her out there."

"If anything happens to her, I'm putting you in the pound," I said.

"The pound?" Jayla snorted smugly. "I think you mean the pen, as in jail."

"No, I meant what I said about the pound. You'd fit right in with the other hounds. Isn't that your favorite position with your men? Doggy style?" I snapped, aiming a wink at her over my shoulder.

Jayla stopped dead in her tracks and had tears building in her eyes not a second later. She knew just what to do to make me feel guilty, didn't she? Her bottom lip trembled. Her thin shoulders shook with the struggle to keep in her crying. The girl worked her little sister card on me like a Visa. Charge it!

"Oh, quit pouting," I sighed. "Think of it this way. Even if you were a dog, you're so beautiful that you'd win first prize at the dog show."

That was all I could give her. She wasn't getting a sorry out of me; especially since I was still two feet away and could throttle her for probably loosing my cat forever. But, Jayla understood for once in her sorry life and the childish tears ended. Her face returned to its bubbly expression and she smiled at me. I ignored her; my now narrow mind directed on finding my cat since Big Sis had babied her little sis once more. One of these days I was going to swear to stop giving in to Jayla's manipulative cuteness.

As I reached for the handle of the front door, it swung open and three of my brothers filed into the house. Bobby was the last, carrying a hissing and squirmy black ball by what looked like its neck.

"This was close to being road kill under my car. Since I didn't hit it, maybe I can make it into a nice hat for La Vida Loca," Bobby mused, waggling the cat's body in the air so that she shrieked and took a swipe at him with her claws.

"Don't you dare or I'll skin you right along with her," I threatened.

He only smirked in twisted delight as he shook Eve one last time before flinging her at me. Eve did truly resemble a fur hat as she sailed through the air. Except, most hats didn't sound like a siren going off or have limbs flailing. The poor animal. I gave it a year maximum before Bobby did the gas thing and I found Eve barbequed for dinner.

Fortunate for Eve, I could catch her with ease and she landed safely in my arms. That didn't stop the feline from making bloody line on my forearm with her claws.

"Why do you always gotta torment my pets?" I asked Bobby as he and Angel moseyed on into the living room to check if the hockey game they'd been bragging about for two days straight was on yet.

"It's not your pets I got problems with. I didn't make that snake you snuck past Ma disappear, now did I?" Bobby chuckled, making me miss Amazon, the grass snake I'd found when I was eight. I'd never seen Mom move so fast until I saw her jump onto the kitchen counter when Amazon got loose and slithered over her feet. Sometimes it hurt to remember the good times before Victor Sweet.

"Then why do you keep putting Eve through near-death experiences everyday?" I huffed, stroking the cat on the chin to calm her.

"I don't like cats. And that thing is a cat. Put two and two together, Sweet Cheeks. The cat won't leave. So, I'm gonna put it through hell until it does get out of my house," Bobby said, crossing his ankles and propping his feet on the coffee table.

"You're the one who gave her to me as a present," I scoffed.

"I know. But, I never said I'd play nice with the fur ball."

"Well, she's mine. So, you better stay away from her. Or, at least stop kicking her like she's a football."

"We needed a football the other day. The cat just so happen to be there," Angel laughed and I glared at Jack when he snickered from somewhere in the kitchen.

"And my foot is going to just so happen end up between your legs," I said, not in the mood for idle threats.

"I know better," Bobby chuckled and Angel smirked at that. "I wear a cup whenever she has her moods. I think she's on her time of the month."

"Are you wearing one now?" I asked, taking a few suggestive steps towards him.

His brows crinkled together and those eyes were daring me to continue. "No. Is there a reason you would like to know, Sammy?"

"I'm just saying. My foot has a tendency to slip every once and awhile," I said and gave him a harmless shrug.

"Well, that foot better stay firmly glued to the ground if you're anywhere near me, girl," he yelled after me as I walked into the kitchen.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I yawned. I was bored of the conversation.

"Where's dinner, Cracker Jack?" Bobby called to Jack, who had popped open a beer and was nursing it at the table. That's one thing I never understood about my brothers. They got good and drunk at a bar before coming home to pull out more alcohol. Dang, I couldn't wait till I was twenty-one.

"We just got home, Bobby. Give me a few minutes," Jack groaned, gulping down half the beer and dragging himself to his feet.

I set Eve on the floor and picked up Jack's beer to take a sip. If it were me, I would have told Bobby to eat the lint right out of his bellybutton. But, Jack had more patience than me. That's why he was cooking tonight and I wasn't.

"I don't wanna here that mess, princess. A man likes a woman who can put a hot meal on the table right when he enters the house. You need to practice for your future husband," Bobby said and I heard laughter come from Angel.

After getting some chicken out, Jack slammed the refrigerator shut with his cheeks burning red at Bobby's nonstop cruel jokes. I watched him angrily prepare dinner. The way he was handling the chicken, he wouldn't have decapitated it if it were alive.

In Jack's defense, I whirled around to face the living room and shouted back at Bobby, "I suppose that makes you his man, huh? Well, damn, Bobby. I had my suspicions about Jack switching teams. But, you? I'm proud to know my oldest bro can be so open about his sexuality."

"Watch it, Sam." Bobby's voice was a growl. I'd succeeded in pushing his buttons.

"It's okay, Bobby. I accept it. You can talk to me about anything. I won't judge you because I love you. Also, this gives me a new buddy to talk about boyfriends and go to shopping with," I giggled, finding myself unable to contain myself.

"That does it," Bobby grumbled and I listened to the couch creak.

Oh, crap.

"Come here!" Bobby roared, chasing me like some bull aiming for my burgundy sweatshirt through the kitchen, dinning room, and out the back door.

"One of the first signs of being gay is denial," I said in the tone of a therapist, still running for my life. "Are you in denial, Bobby?"

"Wait till I catch you, you smartass." Even while he was being serious, I noticed the smile pulling at Bobby's mouth.

I halted quick, dived under Bobby's legs, and dashed back for the house. On my way through the kitchen, Jack gave me a high-five and he thanked me for getting Bobby off his case. Oh, didn't he know that the pleasure was all mine?

That was until Bobby caught me on the front lawn and there was hell to pay.

(I thought I'd put in a fun chapter before returning to the drama.)

(There's another flashback coming for you guys in the next chapter. Everything's coming into play. Evelyn's adopting Jack and Sam. So, everyone will officially be Mercers now. Bobby and Angel are going to go through with the plan to throw the cops off their scent, even if it means hurting the people dearest to them. No, they're not that cruel. It a different kind of hurt. The kind that can only come from the heart.)


	2. Leaving

(I just thought about this and it's bugging the hell out of me. Okay, you guys, I know in my oldest four brothers story I had the ages all screwed up. So, here are the ages in this story; just in case you needed to know. Present: Sam – 18, Jack – 22, Angel – 26, Jerry – 30, Bobby – 32. Past: Sam – 10, Jack – 14, Angel – 17 almost 18, Jerry – 22, Bobby – 24. Got that? So, now there's no issues with the ages in my stories. Thanks for reading.)

Alright, this memory is gonna be a bitch. I didn't feel good about it when it actually took place and I can't stand the thought of it even more now. In all the time Bobby has been my brother, I haven't ever truly hated him. Yeah, I said 'I hate you' fifty times a day. But, that was normal and I was only joking around with the guy. Still, some people (even family) can do things so upsetting that they'll make you despise them for years. I just never thought that Bobby would be that person.

**The members of our family we're not known for having conversations on the hushed level. That included ones that were supposed to be secret. Usually the voice that could be heard a mile away was Bobby. And that's just who I heard as I came out of the bathroom from my usual trip there at three o'clock in the morning.**

"**I'm twenty-four, Ma. If I wanna go then you don't have a say in it," came Bobby's scoff from the kitchen.**

**My head whipped around at that. I knew my family well enough to spot three things that were very wrong, like it was second nature. One: Mom was up late talking to one of us when she often ordered us to stay in bed since she had to get up early on weekdays for work. Besides, Mom was no night owl. Two: Bobby said he needed to go out. It was his habit to walk into the house from some bar at this hour; not leave it. Three: Bobby was using attitude with Mom. That was something that just didn't happen for any of us. Mom may have been a peaceful, loving soul. But, if one of us ever gave her lip, then she became worse of a badass than Bobby.**

"**Keep your voice down. And if you take that tone of voice with me again, Bobby Mercer, you'll find that you won't have to worry about leaving this house," Ma said with her no-nonsense, slightly pissed tone. "So help me, you won't recognize your dear mother if you push my patience after what you just told me."**

"**Sorry, Ma," I faintly heard Bobby mumbled like a kid before the fridge door opened. He was getting a beer.**

"**You don't have to do this, Bobby. There are other ways."**

**Bobby gulped down some beer before responding. "You know there isn't. Trust me. I've gone through every other choice that Jerry has mentioned and they're all dead ends."**

"**Can they really arrest you for those murders?" Mom asked.**

**Murders? Wait a minute. Did this mean that Bobby had actually spilled to Mom about killing Dan and Connor? It made no sense. If Jerry had squealed, I would have thought nothing of it, because Jerry was the one to go to Mom when he knew we were wrong and couldn't stop us. Angel talking to Mom about what had happened would have certainly shocked the hell out of me for a second, because Angel was Bobby's partner in crime for all their little jobs nowadays. Still, Angel wasn't even old enough to vote and the panic of being charged of murder could cause him to run to Mom. Even if Jack wanted to spill the beans, I might have seen that coming, because Mom always found a way to make Jack tell her all the family secrets.**

**But, Bobby?**

**Though Bobby was always honest to Mom on matters concerning the entire Mercer clan, he kept his personal criminal life hush-hush. It's not like he could pull the wool over her eyes and Mom found out more times than not. But, if Bobby wanted a felony hidden from her bad enough, then he made sure no one told her.**

**And here my big brother was, ratting himself out to the head honcho of the house.**

"**There's nobody else who wanted those two dead as bad as me," Bobby said, a growl having crept into his throat.**

"**So, it is Jack's father and brother who got you into this situation," Mom sighed and it sounded as if she had aged two more decades in not two moments. "I knew that's where you and Angel were that night. You were much too at ease when you walked into Jack's hospital room."**

"**I couldn't leave them alive, Ma. I know. I know," Bobby said in a hurry when Mom must have given him that look we all got at some point in our lives. "The cops would have got them both and locked them up. They had evidence up the ass to the put those two away for life. But, that's what happened last time. They were supposed to be in jail until they died. But, they were let out. Fucking judge would have let them off again, Ma. And Jackie would be in the goddamn loony bin if they got their hands on him again. I wasn't having it. And I know, as much as you love Jack, that you would have taken a swing or two at Jack's dad if you had the chance."**

**There was a paused and I moved with careful footsteps to the stairs.**

"**I think I understand better than anyone why you and Angel did what you did. But, that doesn't change that it's still a crime and the police know who the blame falls on," Mom told her eldest son.**

"**That's why I have to leave," Bobby huffed, as he did whenever he had repeated himself one too many times.**

"**And you expect me to let Angel go right along with you?" Mom said and I could perfectly imagine her brows drawing together in the middle of her smooth forehead.**

"**Angel's staying. He doesn't know that yet and plans to hit the road at my side. But, I'm making him stay. The cops want me. Angel's a kid and they could give a damn about his record. He's only got half my blood count and the worst he's done is hustling. Me…I'm the Michigan Mauler. Green already told me that his buddies were probably going to just say Angel was a witness to the murders and give him nothing but a slap on the wrist for not telling. I'm the one they're going to keep coming at and sooner or later this whole family's gonna pay."**

**The minutes that passed seemed to tick twice as slow while Mom brooded over Bobby's words and what it all meant to her and the rest of us.**

"**Come on, Mom," I whispered, nibbling on my guitar calloused fingers.**

**Mom had to say he couldn't run off. She had never let Bobby get his way in the past. So, she was gonna put her foot down now. I mean, as much as I feared the idea of Bobby being thrown in prison, I couldn't bare it if he went on the run from the cops. Who'd know if we ever saw him again after that? My birth parents, foster parents, social workers, friends; they'd all abandoned me. I flinched when I came to the conclusion that Bobby might be added to that list.**

**Mom's voice jerked me out of my thoughts and to what she had to say about Bobby's decision to walk out on the only family he, as well as any of us, had ever had.**

"**You have to tell the others," she whispered.**

**If anything, I felt like I'd been shot in the chest, and I didn't bother to break my fall as I stumbled backwards on the stairs. I lay sprawled there for I didn't give a damn how long, with rage pounding in my blood like liquid fire, with such intensity that I wasn't sure if I could breathe any longer. I forced what air I got in and out of my body as I clenched my fists and glared at the ceiling with eyes that'd seem demonic on a child my size.**

"**They can't know until I'm gone, Ma. They wouldn't understand and would try everything to make me stay. I'll leave while they're all out of the house and call to tell them what's up once I get far away from the cops."**

**That son of a bitch! Did he think his excuses were enough? I didn't want a fucking phone call from half way across the U.S., trying to make up for the shit he was pulling.**

"**When are you going to be back?" Mom wondered. The quivering I heard from her meant that Bobby had nearly brought her to tears.**

"**There's no saying. The cops ain't gonna give up so easily. It's gonna be a long time before I see you guys again."**

**Bobby somehow delivered that blow with no trouble. Did he even care that he was breaking Mom's heart and most likely gonna kill me with this.**

"**I don't know if I can watch you walk out, Bobby." Mom was crying by now. "What am I going to do without one of my boys here? It won't be the same without you here to cause trouble."**

"**You'll still have those four to work your nerves, Ma." Was that supposed to fix this?**

"**At least leave something behind to help them understand, Bobby. They can't sit by the phone waiting on a call. Write a note and let them know that what you're doing is for them," Mom begged, sniffling to control her tears. "At least tell them that you love them."**

**I found myself hyperventilating, my head thumping painfully on the wooden floor as my limbs shook and went into spasms.**

"**No. I'm not gonna leave them no note, Ma."**

**And that's when I burst.**

"**You selfish fuck!" I screamed, up on my feet and down the stairs so fast I banged my hip on the banister.**

"**Sam?" Mom and Bobby gasped in unison when I appeared in the kitchen doorway.**

**Looking at him hurt my eyes. Just the sight of him caused my stomach to turn over and my face paled. I could even feel the bile rising in me. But, the murderous fury directed at my brother was on boil and I had to get it out.**

"**You don't care enough to even leave us a damn note! What is wrong with you?! How can you do this? I thought you were my brother!" I roared.**

**For anyone watching, it would look like Bobby and I had switched bodies. I stood, nostrils flaring and one fist banging on the wall as Bobby's eyes lightened the several shades and emotions it took to become my childlike eyes as he knelt to my height.**

"**Sweet Cheeks," he whispered and I caught his hand reaching for mine out of the corner of my eye.**

"**Don't touch me!" I shrieked, not just satisfied with smacking his hand away.**

**Once my sharp slap connected with his skin, I was gone and had no power to restrain myself. My little ten-year-old body went flying and I rammed into Bobby's chest. I had put my entire weight into it and managed to take him down. We hit the kitchen tiles and I growled because Bobby had wrapped his arms around me to protect me in the fall. I squirmed, feeling disgusted by Bobby's touch. My madness doubled, I was panting and grunting like an animal as I balled my hands into fist and brought them down on Bobby's body wherever I could get them at.**

"**Sam, stop it!" Mom yelled as she grabbed my waist to pull me off of Bobby.**

"**Don't you touch me either! You were just gonna let him leave us!" I shouted at her, shoving her away from me.**

**With Mom having distracted me, Bobby immediately seized both my wrist before spinning me around so that I lost my footing and fell in his lap.**

"**Let me go!" I snarled, fighting to get free.**

**My arms useless in his iron grip, I kicked at his legs and scratched him with my nails, screaming my head off the entire time. He curled his body over mine and hugged me tight to him, giving me no choice by to listen as he talked in my ear.**

"**I'm sorry, Sammy. I know you want me to stay and I wish to God that I could. But, I got to go to protect ya," he murmured, making me wince.**

"**You're lying," I panted, bucking against the arms crushing me.**

"**I would never lie to you, Sweet Cheeks," Bobby said with determination for me to hear him out. "I love you."**

**Those three words drove me to the brink and thrust my elbow back into his ribs. As I had hoped for, he released me and clutched his ribcage. Wanting to add to his pain, I whipped around and left a stinging red handprint on his cheek where I slapped him.**

**One thing I could say about Bobby was that he never, ever gave up and didn't let anyone get his spirit down. But, the moment I had struck him, the fight drained out of Bobby and he did nothing but sit there with his face remaining turned in the direction I had slapped it. If I hadn't been so wrapped up in the belief that I'd been betrayed and cast off like junk, then I would have taken the time to pay attention to something that I wouldn't see again until Mom died. Maybe I wouldn't have said what I said if only I'd raised my gaze to look in Bobby's eyes. But, I realized too late that I had hurt my brother worse than he had hurt me by saying the eleven words I would regret for as long as I lived.**

"**I hate you! I don't care if you ever come back!"**

**The words out, my bloody red rage vanished and I got up the courage to look at Bobby. What I saw in his eyes horrified me and I whimpered at it. Before the guilt of what I'd done could set in, I pushed past my other three brothers, who had come to break up whatever fight they had overheard.**

**I clicked the lock of the bathroom door behind me as I shut myself in the room. Oh, my god. I had done the unthinkable. I had done the most appalling thing ever in the Mercer household. The roar of those eleven words filled my ears as my back hit the bathroom door and I dropped to the floor. Not once… Not once had I seen what I saw that day. And it was all my fault that it had happened. I closed my eyelids and beneath them I watched a moment that I wouldn't be able forget replay over and over.**

**I knew I was wrong for what I had done.**

**I had achieved the impossible.**

**I was as cruel as anyone who had abandoned me…**

… **because I had made Bobby cry.**

(Bet that was the last thing y'all were expecting, huh? I'll let you in on a secret. I didn't see it coming either as I was typing this, until I got to the end and needed something crazy to happen. And what's more extreme than someone having the ability, besides Evelyn, to get Bobby to cry. I had to make Sam be somewhat of a bitch to do it. But, she's ten and looks at Bobby like he's a god. It was worth it. Just in case you were wondering why I have both T and M versions of this story, it's because of some later on chapters. They get pretty graphic and there's just some stuff I have to cut out of the T version. The full chapters will be in the M version. As always, review. I'd appreciate it.)


	3. Two Years Later

I remember it was a Saturday when Bobby woke up early to bring his two large suitcases down stairs and have a home cooked breakfast from Mom for the last time. Even though they wanted nothing more than to literally knock some sense into Bobby for making his choices without any of us, especially Angel, my three remaining brothers still trudged down the stairs to say their goodbyes. Mom had sobbed until she just about made her self sick, of course. As for me, I remained in my room and tried to steer my mind away from that moment. I had said my goodbye to Bobby when I had slapped him that one night. And I didn't intend to deliver it any other way. If he, the man who was both a brother and father to me, wanted to leave me… So be it.

**I hate to say, my absence from the group on the first floor hadn't gone unnoticed. My bed dipped at my feet as Bobby sat on it and patted my knees.**

"**Come on, Sweet Cheeks. I know you got a big mouth over there. So, you have to talk to me some time," Bobby chuckled, attempting to lighten my wretched mood. He was unsuccessful.**

**Bobby's cocky smirk faltered when I only gave him a brief blank look before turning my gaze back to the wall. I kept telling myself that I really did hate his guts.**

"**It's been days since you've said a word to me, baby. I know I messed up big time. But, you've gotta know that I'm not abandoning you. I swear I'll be back. Now I might not see you for a long time. But, I'm coming back home. We just can't leave it like this between you and me," Bobby said.**

**He moved until his face was in front of mine and I had to look at him. I wanted to forgive him and send him off knowing that he'd always be my hero. But, how was I going to do that? I had spent many years thinking that once someone was out of my life then I had to keep it that way. So, Bobby was asking me to get rid of that blanket of reassurance for him? If anybody else had asked that of me, I would have been able to. I'd do it, because I knew Bobby would be there to protect me from the cold once that blanket was ripped away. But, Bobby wasn't going to be there.**

**Not much happened after that. I stayed silent as we sat there and Bobby understood that he wasn't getting forgiveness or even a hug from me.**

"**Goodbye, Sammy," Bobby whispered, his breath warm on my ear.**

**His kiss burned my cheek and I squeezed my eyes shut to hold in the water that threatened to fall from them.**

**When I dragged up my eyelids again and let the tears go, Bobby was gone. By then, it hit me that I had lost my last chance to tell him I loved him to his face. Panic set in and I was on my feet in seconds. That's when I heard the rumble of Bobby's car. I hurried over to the window and opened it to crawl out onto the roof. The last memory I had of my oldest brother was watching his car disappear around the corner at the end of the street as I screamed for him to come back.**

**He didn't turn around.**

When Bobby said that he had no idea when he'd be back, he wasn't playing around. Nearly six months after he split, we finally got the call we'd been waiting on from him. He couldn't tell us where he was; but did say he was okay and no cops had shown up for him. In return, Jerry told him that the cops at home had long since figured out that Bobby had run for it. That information alone was what probably kept Bobby on the run.

Bobby never visited. Whenever Mom and I asked him to he'd give us this bullshit about how it was too dangerous to head home yet. I didn't fall for it and neither did anybody else. After so long, I came to assumption that Bobby just grew to like his life far away from us. I'm not saying Bobby didn't love his family. But, regardless of how much he hadn't minded staying a few extra years in the Mercer house, he had been looking for a way to get the fuck out of Detroit and be 'Bobby Mercer' instead of part of the 'Mercers'.

Calls kept coming every couple of months and we waited for them with high anticipation. Bobby was still part of them family; yet he wasn't. We all held out some hope that on one of his phone calls he'd spring it on us that he was returning home. But, it never happened. Soon, we gave up waiting for it. None of us sat next to the phone anymore and only talked to Bobby is we were in to catch the call. Jerry went back to spending time at Camille's. Angel, who had never really forgiven Bobby for leaving him behind, was usually out hanging or fucking with Sofi. Jack worked through the issues in his head and soon acted like every other teenager; out at some party or running a muck around the neighborhood. Mom and I were the only ones almost always there to talk to Bobby. Still, even I got tired of nothing but phone calls and told Bobby so. And maybe the guilt brought on by me was what, at last, convinced him to pay us a visit.

That didn't mean he came back fast. Two years passed before we saw him again.

**Evelyn raised her gaze from the newspaper in her hands as the front door shut and footsteps made their way into the house. With a glance at the time, she knew it had to be her youngest child being dropped off after school by Jerry. It wasn't very hard for Evelyn to fix her face in the picture of disappointment as she rose from her chair and threw the paper down on the kitchen table.**

"**Don't even think of going up to your room, missy. Get your behind in here and explain this report card," Evelyn ordered, snatching up the folded piece of paper with 'Samantha Mercer' typed across the top.**

"**Well, I didn't know I was a girl or that I was still in school," a humored male voice replied.**

"**Bobby!" Evelyn squealed into her hands just as he entered the kitchen.**

**Bobby tossed two duffle bags on the floor right before Evelyn all but catapulted herself into his arms and squeezed him tight, all her love for him being used in the embrace. Immediately, Bobby's arms went around her as well and he breathed in the wonderful aroma that surrounded his mother. Why he had stayed away for so long, he couldn't say.**

"**When did you get here?" Evelyn asked, pulling back to grab Bobby's face and press her lips to it.**

"**Just now. I got off of work for the month. So, I'm here for awhile," he said and Evelyn's grin grew.**

"**You better be. Do you know how long it's been seen I've seen you, boy? Sit down," Evelyn said as she ushered Bobby over to one of the kitchen chairs. "Are you hungry? You look thin. Let me fix you a little something to eat."**

**Bobby chuckled as she scurried to the cabinets. "Ma, I haven't even said if I wanted anything."**

"**I don't care. I just want to cook for you," Evelyn said, daring him object. "Besides, when was the last time you had a meal as great as your mother's?"**

"**Well, I don't know. There was last week," Bobby hummed, rubbing his chin.**

"**Bobby." The warning was clear.**

"**Never," Bobby re-answered.**

**Evelyn nodded with a smile as if she hadn't heard him the first time. Bobby had a minute to let the familiarity of his old home take him in as his mother whipped together a toasted roast beef sandwich with all his favorite toppings.**

"**So…," Bobby said as Evelyn placed the sandwich in front of him and sat in her chair again. "What was that all about when I came in?"**

**Evelyn scrunched her nose a bit and removed her reading glasses. "I thought you were Sam. She isn't doing very well in school."**

"**And what's 'not very well', huh?" Bobby asked as he started on his meal.**

**Evelyn pushed the card across the table and Bobby flipped it open. A whistle escaped his mouth at the number of C's and D's listed.**

"**Are you sure they didn't mix up the grades?" Bobby mumbled, his mouth full.**

"**Her grades have been dropping more and more for the last year, Bobby. It's no mistake. And swallow before you speak," Evelyn huffed, shaking her head at the lack of manners she remembered Bobby to have.**

"**Sam's the bookworm, though. How is she gettin' grades like this?"**

"**Well, her study habits are poor and she just doesn't seem to show an interest in school like she used to. I'm afraid she might fail if I don't stress it to her how important school is."**

**Evelyn offered to make a second sandwich when Bobby finished his. He took up that offer, starving since he had not eaten anything that day. The ringing telephone caught both their attentions and Evelyn picked it up as she poured mustard over the roast beef.**

"**Hello? Yes, this is she," she paused and sighed a moment later. "She did? I know. Okay. Thank you. I'll be right there. Bye."**

"**Sam?" Bobby guessed.**

"**She's started another fight at school. Chipped two of the boy's teeth," Evelyn said, giving Bobby his sandwich and a beer.**

"**Wait a minute. Little Sammy got into a fight?"**

**There was no mistaking the pride glowing in Bobby's eyes and Evelyn had to give him an evil frown he knew too well for it to go away. It was a mystery how such a sweet woman like Evelyn could muster an expression like that.**

"**This is the third time this year," Evelyn let him know as she walked over to the coat rack and grabbed her fleece jacket. "I have to go down to the school and talk to the principal. Are you going to be here when I get back?"**

"**Of course, Ma. I was planning on staying here while I'm in Detroit. I can take the couch, right?" Bobby said, waving a hand at the piece of furniture.**

"**Why? You're bedroom is still there," Evelyn said.**

**Bobby frowned. "Jerry didn't do anything to our room?"**

"**Nope," Evelyn said, slipping on her boots. "It's just like you left it, honey. Now, I should be back in half an hour if this meeting goes like the last. The fridge is full. And I hear there's a hockey game on. Though, you'll probably be spending all your time with Jerry anyway."**

"**Jerry's here?" Bobby asked, his eyes flicking to the ceiling.**

"**Yeah. He's up in Angel's room fixing the bed. It broke last week."**

"**I'm not surprised," Bobby muttered, snickering when he thought of how Angel and Sofi had most likely broke the bed.**

**Evelyn chose to ignore the remark and pecked Bobby on the chin before grabbing her keys.**

"**See you when I get back," she said on her way out and Bobby shut the door behind her.**

**Pressing his back to the door and drumming his fingers on it, Bobby huffed through his nose and eyed the stairs. That wasn't such a bad idea to go and say hello to his little brother. In Bobby speak that meant to go and harass him in the way only Bobby could pull off.**

**Grinning devilishly, Bobby jogged up the upstairs to Angel's room.**

(Well, I pulled off Bobby leaving and returning home all in the same chapter. How will the other Mercers react? You'll just have to wait and see. Review and I'll send in an update. I already have a chapter written and waiting for y'all.)


	4. Who Are These People?

**Jerry was right where Evelyn said he was, lying halfway under the bed with his tools. All the Mercers could fix or were good at making something work. Bobby did cars. Jerry could put anything together as long as it was easy. Angel could manage anything that got him a girl. Jack tuned guitars. And Sam had something figured out if it came with instructions. So, Bobby wasn't surprised to see Jerry there.**

**The least he could do as a brother was have some fun with him.**

**Cupping his hands around his mouth, Bobby yelled in a shrill female voice, "The house is on fire!"**

**Jerry, obviously startled, jumped and banged his forehead on the bottom of the bed. He groaned and slid out from under it to sit up. Rubbing his head, he glared at who he expected to be Angel. The last person he imagined to see laughing at his humiliation was his big brother.**

"**Bobby?" he gasped, grabbed the headboard to climb to his feet.**

"**I can't believe you still fall for that," Bobby said.**

"**Get over here, you jackass," Jerry chuckled.**

**The two brothers stepped together and clapped each other in a hug.**

"**It's good to see you, man," Jerry sighed, stressing every word. He had missed his brother to the point where it could have been seen as ridiculous.**

"**So, how's my bro been without me to save his ass?" Bobby wondered as the two parked it on the newly fixed bed.**

**Jerry scoffed and shoved his brother's shoulder. "I'm great. Got me a job and a beautiful woman. It's our other three siblings you should be worried about."**

"**What you talking about? Who do I beat down on?" Bobby said, his tone darkening.**

"**They ain't in any serious stuff. Angel's just confused about his life right now and what he wants to do with it. He knows he can't be a hustler forever and once Mom shot down his idea of being a pimp, he just got all hopeless. Jack…"**

**Jerry stopped to chuckle once and exhale all the air out of him.**

"**I don't know what's up with that kid. Jack's just been 'different'. I don't mean the normal different. He's been out past his curfew just about every night and there're rumors going around that he's running with punks our age."**

"**So? We did that shit when we were teenagers," Bobby snorted, not seeing the big deal.**

"**This is Jack we're talking about, Bobby. He's a loner, who holes himself up in his room with his guitar all damn day. Do you really think he'd purposely be doing this shit if he was alright?" Jerry asked.**

"**Now that you put it that way," Bobby said, knowing their little brother better than anyone and spotting the weirdness in what Jerry was saying. "And Sam?"**

**Jerry just shook his head. That said it all.**

"**She's the worst. I swear she's morphed into a mini you. She's picked fights and skipped school more times than I can count. And her whole education is going down the drain. The kid just doesn't care about where she's going anymore. Now, does that sound anything like the Sam you know?"**

"**Fuck, Jerry. None of them sound like they should. What the fuck has been going on while I've been gone? Why haven't you set them straight?" Bobby growled, directing his temper at the brother beside him.**

"**Why haven't I set them straight?" Jerry repeated in an identical tone as he jabbed a finger in his own chest. "Angel's pretty much an adult. Jack's the toughest to figure out. Sam's got a harder head than you. You think it's that simple? I'm not you. I can't just rough them up and tell them to be good. Things have changed around here, man. It ain't easy taking care of this family when I'm thinking of starting my own and…"**

"**Whoa," Bobby stopped Jerry mid-sentence, a grin tweaking on his mouth. "Did you knock some girl up?"**

"**No, man," Jerry said and rolled his eyes. "You remember Camille?"**

**Bobby searched his mind and came back with the image of some girl Jerry had begun to date in the months before his departure.**

"**I only met her a few times. But, yeah, I remember her."**

"**Okay. Well, we've been together for a good while now and I think it's time," Jerry said and Bobby swore the man was acting giddy.**

"**Time for what?" Bobby said slowly, waving his hand to get Jerry to continue.**

**Jerry stood up and went across the hall to the room he once shared with Bobby. Returning quickly, Jerry pulled something from behind his back and showed it to his brother.**

"**Is that what I think it is?" Bobby opened the tiny black box and a ring blinded him.**

"**I'm going to propose to Camille," Jerry chuckled and Bobby could only blink. "If she says yes, then your little brother is going to be a married man."**

**Bobby leaned back against the headboard and scratched his gelled hair. This was just too fucking much to pack into his first visit home.**

**Jerry, who said he'd wait until he was much older to settle down, was getting engaged and had already bought the ring with probably everything in his bank account.**

**Angel, the brother who lived in the moment and could give a damn about life, was loosing sleep about his future and if he was going to do better then living with his mother for the next ten years.**

**Jack, the only brother to be a well-behaved teenager aside from his abuse issues, was gradually joining the Mercer's troublesome mold and becoming a bad boy.**

**And Sam had just outclassed Bobby and lost her mind while he was away.**

**Eyes on a picture of the whole Mercer clan hanging on the wall, Bobby regretted ever leaving his siblings to cope on their own. Because, without him around to keep them in line, they had fucked things up to the hilt.**

**As he worked on ways to sort out each brothers' and sister's life, Bobby had to laugh at how things had gotten so out of control. It only ever happened to the Mercers.**

"**Welcome home, Bobby."**

(So, what do you think? We all knew the Mercers were fucked up to begin with. But, now we're going to see just how bad they can really get. Please review. That review button is there for a reason.)


	5. Getting Some Answers

(Yeah! I got my writer's mojo back. Sorry it took so long. Oh, man, college is hitting me hard and I have been so depressed about it, it's like I couldn't write anymore. But, school is almost out and I'm getting my mojo again! So, expect more updates.)

The day Bobby came home was all hugs and kisses. **Translation: That day was FUCKED UP!** Correcting myself, the day Bobby came home 'should have' been all hugs and kisses. But, that just ain't the Mercer family way. Take notes. Okay. Okay. I admit that we did act civil and play like nice kiddies for Mom's sake for the first few hours. But, like always, Mom knew we were bullshitting her. Once she gave us the thumbs up to express our true feelings, that's when the cursing, name calling, and some first-rate ass kicking came out to the maximum and whoever was within a hundred foot radius had better run for their lives.

**That night after dinner, Mom and I washed the dishes together, submitting to actually being the women of the house and cleaning. My brothers, the lazy bastards, were watching a hockey game on the tube and leaving us to all the work. And those guys were supposed to be examples of what my future man should be like? In that case, I was better off being a lesbian.**

"**So, how does it feel to have your biggest brother back home?" Mom asked, drying each dish once I was finished scrubbing it down.**

**I knew what she meant, but had to crack a joke. "What do you mean? Jack's always been here."**

**The corners of Mom's mouth crinkled as she attempted to keep away her smile. I wasn't the only one who knew Jack and Bobby's height difference was a hilarious new discovery and begged for teasing. Bobby sure got a heavy blow when he saw his youngest brother had gone through a teenage growth spurt and now stood over him by at least three or four inches. After years of taking merciless gibes from Bobby, Jack finally got his revenge and tormented our brother every chance he got. Bobby had had enough of that about twenty minutes ago. We had barely grabbed him in time when he had begun to leap over the dinning room table and throttle Jack.**

"**Seriously, Sam. Does Bobby coming home bother you?" Mom said.**

"**Why should it? It's not like he's here to stay. Before we know it, he's gonna be right back out that door and on the road again for another two years," I scoffed, waving a hand at the front door, tossing water and suds with it.**

**Mom dodged the soppy water and made a sad hum as she gazed down at me with her wise and optimistic eyes. I bowed my head, hiding from those eyes that could make me crack like the nut(case) I was and cause me tell her everything. Mom was my human diary. Always had been and most likely would be forever.**

"**Don't lie and tell me that it isn't nice to have him back."**

"**Of course it's great. I'm thrilled. Still, that's why I'm so pissed with him, Mommy," I said, now at a whining that I was getting too old for as I threw up my hands and another couple of handfuls of water went flying. "If he was gonna wait two freaking years, why did he come back at all? Just when I get used to him being gone and not seeing his stupid face everyday, he shows up on our doorstep. And it's not his doorstep anymore. It's ours! And he had no right setting foot on it ever again!"**

**I gasped when the last bit of water I had flung splattered all over Mom's face and drops of it marked her sweater. Oh, way to go, dumbass. I couldn't do nothing right.**

**Mom, the forgiving woman she was, only gave a genuine laugh that shook her shoulders and reached for a rag to dry herself.**

"**I'm sorry," I said and found myself laughing along with her as I used another rag to dab water from her short gold bangs.**

**Mom waved off my apologies at the same moment Bobby poked his head into the kitchen. Should have known he'd pop in sooner or later. Things didn't stay comfortable for long in our house.**

**Some invisible hand choked my neck and my laughs ended promptly when that arrogant and fearless face I knew so well appeared. I had had that same reaction to seeing him all day and it only pissed me off more.**

"**Meeting in your room, Sam." Coming from Bobby, that was an order. Was I supposed to bow down at his feet?**

**Well, I didn't take orders from guys that left me behind and couldn't find a speck of time to ever visit me.**

"**Blow me, Bobby. I don't have to listen to you," I sneered.**

**Thank god I was his baby sister, because if anyone else had mouthed off to Bobby 'Michigan Mauler' Mercer that way then they would have received the whole package: A nasty scowl with a nice set of fists that left you on your ass.**

**I was lucky enough to only be given the scowl and four menacing steps in my directions. I slid an inch back. Oh, frickity frack. Didn't look to me like surly and sassy was working in my favor that day.**

"**I don't think I heard ya right the first time. Say that again," Bobby said and my confidence shrank somewhat when I heard that edge in his tone that none of my other brothers were allowed to use because it was reserved for the head honcho of the Mercer boys and him alone.**

"**You… You heard me." What I had pictured to be a bold snarl came out more like an irritated whimper.**

**Though, I made up for that when I whipped the still soapy sponge in my hand at him. It grazed Bobby's ear, drawing a curse from him, but pretty much did no damage as it smacked into the kitchen wall with a SPLAT before plopping onto the tile floor. Now I remembered why I didn't go out for sports at school. My throwing arm was shit.**

"**I think that's enough, Sammy Suds," Mom chuckled, even now being the wall that ended the fights between us Mercer siblings.**

**She wrapped me in a hug from behind and quickly toweled off my hands.**

"**I really think you need to go have a talk with your brother." Her expression was a bit on the scolding side as she added, "Besides, you throw anymore water on my floor, young lady, and your dear mother just might make you mop it instead of her."**

**I smirked, because Mom never ceased to brighten my mood. Bless her. Also, I wasn't going to push my luck when I was already grounded for a terrible report card.**

**Mom kissed my head and patted me on the butt to get me moving towards the kitchen entrance. That suffocating sensation overcame my throat again as I jogged up the stairs after Bobby. I had a feeling this talk wasn't gonna go over so well. They never did, did they?**

**It turned out that I wasn't the only Mercer sibling being forced to go to this meeting that Bobby had called on the spot. When Bobby and I reached my room, all of my other brothers were there as well. Jack was stretched out on his own bed, Angel took mine, and Jerry had himself leaned against the nightstand between the two. My mental alarms kicked up a few notches and I prayed that Mom had 911 on speed dial. This could only end in bloodshed.**

"**Holy shit!" I gasped in a girly melodramatic voice, slapping my hands to my cheeks, and my mouth dropped open. "I actually get to be part of one of the top secret Mercer family meetings! **_**Dios mio!**_**"**

**I whirled around to look at Bobby. My face clicked from bright to dark like a light going off and my wonderful sarcasm lost any humor.**

"**At least that's one benefit of your chicken ass running off," I mumbled, now sounding bored of him. Suck on that.**

**Again, my status as the baby of the family saved me from one of Bobby's painful lessons of respect and rank.**

**Bobby would have seemed as cool and collected as me if it weren't for the slight tick in his jaw as he said, "Don't push me, Sam."**

"**Yeah, I pushed you right out that door last time, didn't I?" I said, plopping down beside Angel on my bed.**

**As Bobby fixed an unsympathetic look across his face to act as if my words didn't slash at him somewhere deep down, the gigolo of brother sitting with me tightly locked an arm around my shoulders to shut me up. I got the memo. Even though I was in the room, I still wasn't a member of these meetings. While I was considered one of the Mercer brothers, I wasn't actually a boy. Man, it sucked being a female in my family!**

**There was a silence in the room that was very uncommon since we never felt uncomfortable around one another after so many years being cooped up in one house; all five sharing a bathroom, bickering over TV privileges, etc. But, things had changed without Bobby in the house and now the vibe was off in that 'first day of school' kind of way. This was the first time we were alone together all day without Mom giving us cues on what to do next so a war wouldn't break out.**

'**Holy moly. Is this awkward or what?' I snickered in my head, glancing at each of my brothers as they fidgeted uneasily.**

**I think with no one speaking, it gave Bobby a chance to really take us in without it being obvious that he didn't recognize us as the people we had been two years back.**

**By my next birthday, I would be a teenager and my body was responding to that. I had shed my last few pounds of noticeable baby fat and slimmed down, giving me quite the figure. For someone who was in junior high, that wasn't the best thing. It had newly horny teenage boys staring at me all through my classes and my brothers paying personal visits to each of those boys because they knew just what they had on their minds. I had an idea of what Bobby was thinking as his eyes zoned in on Jerry's old Earth, Wind, and Fire t-shirt I wore and he silently cursed nature for making me grow like a weed. Rolling my eyes, I crossed my arms over what had him so ticked. It was my chest and the itchy piece of training fabric hidden beneath my shirt. Ah, the day I brought home my first bra. Seriously, that was not the best time to have brothers.**

**Jerry had a maturity to him now that was beyond all of us, with a goatee and fatherly richness in his eyes. Camille had been the remaining woman's touch that Mom hadn't filled in Jerry's life and helped Jerry walk that last step to manhood as he considered starting a family of his own. He wasn't one of us rascally kids anymore. None of my brothers had ever seen themselves growing up to be a husband or a father. But, that had changed in Jerry. He wished for the real no-turning-back deal and was willing to admit it.**

**Angel was on his way to being a man himself. While he still sported a fluffy afro, his style had improved from those rapper-like sweats he once wore; so baggy that I knew he had to have dropped his pants and shown his ass to all of Detroit at least once. Sitting as my side, Angel was now looking so suave in his jeans and a smooth black turtleneck that drew attention to his pumped body. It could even be said that Angel wasn't the ladies' man that he was before. I ain't saying he didn't bring home some piece of pussy every now and then. But, he wasn't doing it with a new chick every other night like he used to. And lately, he didn't seem to be getting any at all. It showed that he had too much on his mind, which was certainly something new to Angel.**

**It wasn't just Jack's height that had changed. Jack altogether was a transformation. Once he fought his way past a period where the memories of his abuse nearly drove him to be institutionalized and several instances of cutting himself landed him in the hospital, Jack finally came to a point where he just needed to change his whole identity to have any hope of becoming somewhat sane again. He socialized at school more and made buddies, whom he started a band with. And the popularity of his band around the area made room for the rock star fashion Jack liked to wear, leading to tons of flirting with girls and several dates. The belief that he wasn't so isolated anymore from everything worth having in the world because of his past had Jack feeling confident these days and it sure showed in the way he presented himself.**

**It might as well explain a look that could freeze hell over he was directing at Bobby before Jerry cleared his throat to shatter the quiet surrounding us. Here we go. Ding, ding, ding. Round one.**

"**So, what's this all about, Bobby?" Jerry started us off.**

"**Yeah, man. What we doin' here?" Angel said.**

"**Y'all know I'm not into this apologizing and sharing feelings mess," Bobby began.**

**From the way he bit down on his lip and turned his head away from us, I knew Jack was itching to say, 'No, shit?'.**

"**But, it's been clear every second since I stepped through that front door that y'all hate me for leaving ya. Not so much you, Jerry. But, the rest of ya look like fuckin' bombs waiting to go off. So, spit it out so we can quit worrying Ma," Bobby let out in a rush, releasing some of what he'd been holding in all day as well.**

**It's not that I wanted to be the first to get my say in. But, I was just as guilty of having a loose and sharp tongue as Bobby.**

**I twiddled my thumbs and asked, "You want the truth?"**

**Bobby nodded and spread out his arms at his sides, letting me know that this was a free shot we were getting to attack him. I didn't take it. I could have been petty and, oh, did I want to badly. I made a note in my head to take a rain check. But, I gave him the straight truth this time.**

"**We don't hate you for leaving anymore. We stopped doing that about a year after you left." Angel and Jerry nodded along with me, though Jack kept his head completely still. "We're mad because you never, and I mean ever, told us where the hell you went or what you've been doing."**

**I had opened the gates of a topic that had been hush-hush for too long and now my brothers were jumping in to get the next word.**

"**She tried to hide it from us. But, we knew Ma went to bed in tears some nights because she didn't know where to look for you if you got into trouble or hurt, man," Angel informed Bobby and we all felt a brief pang in our hearts at the thought of Mom suffering.**

**Bobby's skin paled and he looked appalled, because out of any of us, he was the one who had a love so strong for Ma that it was unearthly and sought to never cause her true grief. Without knowing, Angel had drawn blood from Bobby's tough skin.**

"**If you knew what was going on with Ma, why'd y'all wait so long to tell me? What were you thinking?" Bobby chewed us out, his voice rising.**

**He had some nerve. Then again, this was Bobby. So, scratch that.**

"**Ma didn't want you to know, Bobby," Jerry explained in a serene tone, trying to keep the peace.**

**I wasn't so pleasant.**

"**Why are you blaming us for you screwing up? You could have shared a tad of your marvelous new life with us over one of your stupid phone calls. What was so much better out there on the open road that you couldn't come home or even tell us where on earth you were so we could visit?" I snapped, the rejection I had felt on so many days making itself known in every word.**

**Bobby huffed and pinched the skin in between his eyes, like I was some child who just refused to understand.**

"**For the last time, I couldn't say anything if I was gonna protect you from the cops. They would have used y'all to find me."**

**Angel's fist slammed down on the nightstand, causing the lamp's bulb to flicker off and on and several items to go rolling to the floor. He shook his head with barely contained fury and looked at Bobby as if he couldn't believe what was coming out of our brother's mouth.**

"**That's bullshit and you know it," he scoffed. "You've lied to us long enough, Bobby. I was here. I knew exactly when the police stopped searching for you. So, come up with some new stories to feed us, because we ain't buying it no more."**

"**Keep on, Angel. You're working your way up to a good beating."**

**Jack, who apparently had been close to dozing off in boredom, reflexively tensed till he was stiff as a board as Jerry's relaxed form jolted to life and he was fully prepared to jump on Bobby if he should make a move. Bobby had spoken with such hostility that there was no questioning if his threat was an idle one or not. Angel had entered treacherous territory and we weren't sure if Bobby would really tear him limb from limb. That didn't mean we were willing to test it.**

**But, it was I who saw the threat for what it truly was. Bobby was making to steer away from telling us what had kept him away and damn it if I was gonna let the jerk get away with it.**

**I lost it.**

**Rage fiercer than what someone my age could take had my body shuddering as I walked the few shaky steps it took for me to reach Bobby. Of course, little old Sammy was ignored and I had to punch Bobby in the gut for him to look me squarely in the eyes. A plus: I got to inflict a bit of physical pain.**

**I clawed a handful of his shirt in my fist and yanked him down to be level with me as I said with the demonic voice that only intense wrath ever brought out in me, "Why, Bobby? Why didn't you ever come back?"**

"**Sammy…" he sighed, squeezing my shoulders with his heavy hands.**

"**Don't pussyfoot around it, Bobby. Give her the truth," Angel barked, having my back. Damn, if he wasn't the coolest big brother.**

"**Yeah, give me the truth," I repeated like any annoying younger sister would, but using it to my advantage to make Bobby snap.**

"**You might as well get it out in the open, man. They're out for blood," Jerry chuckled, amused by mine and Angel's demanding behavior.**

**Bobby's face was growing redder by the second and one could have mistaken it as a sign that he was at his boiling point, ready to go on one of his rampages. But, that wasn't the case. Bobby wasn't pissed with us for nagging the truth out of him. Odd as it sounded, I think he was… embarrassed?**


	6. Jack's Independence

**FROM THE LAST CHAPTER:**

_I clawed a handful of his shirt in my fist and yanked him down to be level with me as I said with the demonic voice that only intense wrath ever brought out in me, "Why, Bobby? Why didn't you ever come back?"_

"_Sammy…" he sighed, squeezing my shoulders with his heavy hands._

"_Don't pussyfoot around it, Bobby. Give her the truth," Angel barked, having my back. Damn, if he wasn't the coolest big brother._

"_Yeah, give me the truth," I repeated like any annoying younger sister would, but using it to my advantage to make Bobby snap._

"_You might as well get it out in the open, man. They're out for blood," Jerry chuckled, amused by mine and Angel's demanding behavior._

_Bobby's face was growing redder by the second and one could have mistaken it as a sign that he was at his boiling point, ready to go on one of his rampages. But, that wasn't the case. Bobby wasn't pissed with us for nagging the truth out of him. Odd as it sounded, I think he was… embarrassed?_

**Bobby eased my hand from it's grip on his shirt, lightly massaging the back of my hand with his thumb. He then stepped back a safe distance away from all of us and rubbed his face, exhaling nosily behind his hands and preparing himself. A few seconds ticked by before he dropped his hands from his face and turned a harsh stare on Angel, no more fear or doubt in those brown eyes.**

"**You wanna know why it took me so long to come back to you guys?" His voice was as gritty as his stare.**

**We nodded and waved for him to get to the good part.**

**Expression locked like a gun all set to deliver the bullet, Bobby confessed, "It's because the cops forcing me out of here was a blessing."**

**Distantly, I heard someone say "What the fuck?". I couldn't tell if it was Jerry or Jack who had said it as Angel and I swapped identical bewildered frowns. Well, we expected something awful to come out of Bobby's mouth. But, I tell ya, it sure wasn't that. Don't call the Mercers predictable.**

**Shrugging, as if to say 'You're the ones who asked for this', Bobby continued. "It was the fucking ticket I was asking for. It gave me an excuse to leave without me having to abandon my family for no fucking reason."**

**I'm not even certain when I had begun the waterworks. But, there they were, tears misting up my eyes. Damn it. I couldn't help it. How would you feel if you spent two years wondering if you were the reason why your brother ran clear across the U.S., only to find out it was true in the end?**

**Violently rubbing my shirt sleeve across my eyes to rid them of water, I gritted my teeth and hissed, "Is that how you've always felt about us? Have you always wanted to run away from us? From me?"**

**Bobby cupped my cheek with a gentleness that he let very few people know he had in him and said, "It was never you guys I wanted to ditch. It was a lot of other things, Sammy. It was Detroit. It was my history in this city and all the shit that happened to me before y'all became my family. It was loads of shit. But, it was never you, Sweet Cheeks."**

**He turned to the others.**

"**It wasn't any of you."**

**Jerry hummed and scratched the hairs on his chin like it was all coming together for him. "Ma always said you were running from yourself."**

"**So, you split because you were having some kind of emotional breakdown," Angel laughed, all his teeth exposed in a delighted grin. "Sounds girly if you ask me. I'm not so sure Fairy Boy is the only gay around here."**

**Having once more lost interest in our conversation, Jack merely snorted at the fairy comment and returned to the guitar catalogue he was reading while Bobby retaliated.**

"**Hey, you're one drama queen too many already, Angel. Besides, your big bro never cracks under pressure. That's Cracker Jack's area. Hence the name."**

**Bobby snickered when one of the catalogue pages crinkled as Jack irritably flipped to the next page. I could make out the icy blue glower through his bangs. Poor guy.**

**Fortunately for Jack, the talk steered back to where it originally started and Bobby gave a mature explanation to Angel's ribbing.**

"**I had to go away to get my shit together before I could come home or else I would have fucked up your lives too. I've been dealing with some stuff since I moved into this house and would have packed my bags long ago, if it wasn't for you four. Ma would've understood. But, I stuck around for all these years because y'all needed me in your lives and to be your brother before I could focus on my own business."**

"**We still need you," I told him, fingering the belt loops of his jeans, something I had constantly done when I was younger. You're twelve, Sam, not six. Get a hold of yourself, girl.**

**The reminder of better years left Bobby smiling and he affectingly tugged on my long ponytail so that my head jerked back.**

"**I know. Jerry here gave me the lowdown on how you've been crazy as La Vida Loca without me here to put your asses straight," Bobby said and lightly punched Jerry's arm.**

**Hearing the name we had given his lunatic girlfriend, Angel scowled.**

"**Why do you keep calling my girl that?" he huffed.**

"**Anyway…" Bobby went on, Angel's words meaning nothing to him. "Since you guys can't seem to do nothing right when I don't have an eye on ya to keep you in shape and you miss seeing my handsome mug so much, I think I'll be sticking around for awhile."**

"**Really?" I squeaked; then stopped myself before my hope consumed me. Never expect too much.**

**I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. Jack had sprung up from his reclined position and chucked the catalogue as he scooted to the edge of his bed. He also had this ridiculous expression plastered on his face. You know that one that boys got when they were caught by someone while jacking off. Oh, my god. Did I just use Jack's name in a term that meant to masturbate? I could just hear Bobby's new nickname for him now. I doubt Jack would care to hear my apology for giving Bobby the idea.**

"**How long is awhile?" Angel asked, rescuing me from a visual that would have traumatized me.**

"**I figured five or six months. And then I'll make routine visits in and out of town every couple of months," Bobby suggested.**

**This was, like, mind-blowing awesome! Bobby would be around for half the year and we were promised future visits too. I was one happy camper and that was saying a lot if you examined my high expectations.**

"**No!" Jack suddenly snapped from behind me, opening his mouth for the first time during the entire meeting.**

**Four pairs of eyes jerk around to land on him. Why did I get the sense that this whole thing had yet to begun getting ugly?**

**We had been right there. We had been so close to ending all resentment towards Bobby and starting over. It had been so close that I could have done a jig and a jive on it.**

**Then Jack opened his mouth.**

"**Shit, Jackie," I whined pitifully, collapsing into my mattress because I knew there was no point in trying to get in the middle of what was about to go down.**

"**What do you mean 'no'?" Bobby questioned Jack and impatience sparked in his irises.**

"**What the hell can you do in a few months to make up for two missed years?" Jack asked, handsome face taken over by an expression of unspeakable viciousness that wouldn't have fit him two years before; but sure as hell molded seamlessly into his features now.**

"**I'll do what I have to do to fix whatever's going on," Bobby responded.**

**Either Bobby didn't notice just how serious Jack's anger was or he wasn't concerned enough care. It could be either, knowing Bobby. Watching his lips pull out into a wicked smirk, I knew Bobby expected things to run exactly how they had before he moved away. He remembered how he could do just about anything to Jack and our brother would never fight back. Bobby would provoke him day and night with gay jokes, slap Jack over the back of the head, or even hide Jack's guitar if Jack pissed him off. Brothers acted that way with one another. I knew that. But, Jack had only taken it from Bobby, not Jerry and Angel, because Bobby had been Jack's hero. Bobby could give Jack a busted lip, which he accidentally had during a hockey game, and Jack would excuse it in a heartbeat.**

**But, that had been Jack at fourteen and when Bobby was constantly around to guard him from whatever appeared to pose a threat. Jack was sixteen now and had adapted to living without our big brother as his shield. Living in our part of Detroit didn't help matters either. If you didn't have someone like Bobby, you had to toughen up.**

**If Bobby thought Jack was just going to take any grief he dished out and be quiet about it, he was in for a rude awakening.**

**Of course, Bobby being Bobby, he went on and asked in a mockingly tender tone, "Is there something you need me to fix for ya, sweetheart?"**

**The nickname didn't improve Jack's temper, only adding to it as he rose from his bed. Jerry and Angel had finally climbed onto my train of thought and were aware that there was a huge possibility that violence would break out at any random moment. Why the hell did they think I was parked safely by the headboard of my bed?**

"**I know how to handle my own life. You can just stay out of it since you don't even known anything about it," Jack said, all through teeth I noticed were clenched so tightly they would chip if Jack put anymore pressure on them.**

"**Jack, chill out," I breathed and he let some of the tension out of his jaw.**

**Bobby must have been informed of what the lot of us had been up to while he was away, because he exchanged a look with Jerry that said about Jack 'Yeah, he isn't like himself'. I had been wrong. From the very beginning, Bobby had known Jack wasn't gonna be the same kid he had left behind. He had wanted to test that theory first and my guess was that he didn't like the results.**

**Painful as it was for him, Bobby left out any offensive nicknames and jokes as he said, "What's going on with you, Jackie? Every time you get like this, all bitchy and defensive, something's wrong and has you scared. So, what's your problem?"**

"**Have you ever thought my problem is you?" Jack laughed, though it came out bitter.**

**That was code for 'This conversation is over' in Jack's mind and he moved for the door. Except, in Bobby's mind they were far from finished. And no matter how rebellious or independent Jack had grown to be, Bobby still wasn't gonna permit any of us to have our way over his. His way or the highway.**

**Jack halted promptly when Bobby's body blocked the doorway. Jack growled like a trapped animal fuming in its cage, shoving at Bobby's shoulders to try and budge him. There was no victory for my youngest brother, although he did manage to push Bobby hard enough to cause the older man to sway and stumble back two steps. Momentarily stunned by Jack's show of strength, Bobby didn't brace himself for the second rough shove and was removed from his spot in the doorway, leaving Jack's exit free to walk through.**

**Jack didn't get the chance to escape as Bobby recovered and seized Jack in a headlock just as he was coming out of our room. Keeping one arm around Jack's neck and hooking the other beneath Jack's knee, Bobby threw off Jack's balance and Jack collapsed. As Jack was falling, Bobby grasped the front of Jack's shirt and tossed him onto his bed. The headboard banged against the wall and the mattress squeaked from the sudden weight.**

**A second before he had done it, I guessed Bobby throwing Jack onto the bed would be a sure-fire way to trigger unwelcome memories. And it evidently did as Jack lay paralyzed, trembling fingers dug into his sheets and glazed turquoise eyes lost in nightmares of the sinful things that had been done to him in other beds.**

**Bobby, never meaning to recreate some unspeakable scene from Jack's past, leaned forward and tugged softly on the knee of Jack's jeans to snap him out of his daze.**

**Breaking through the glaze, a fresh wave of hostility glinted in Jack's eyes and he screamed at Bobby, "Don't you fucking touch me!"**

**Jack was off the bed in the blink of an eye and attacking Bobby. Soon, Bobby and Jack were a mess of limbs bashing into each other. Shit! Why did everything only end in violence with this family? We should just sign up to be on the damn Jerry Springer show!**

"**Stop it, you idiots!" I shrieked over their shouting and curses.**

**It was useless. When my brothers got to killing one another, they meant to see it through.**

**Something narrowly missed my head when Jack drove Bobby into the dresser and things went sailing through the air. Nothing in the room was safe; my and Jack's items getting broken left and right.**

**By now, Jerry and Angel had jumped in to separate the two, finding the task harder than they thought it would be. I played my own part by standing on my bed and screaming at the top of my lungs that they were dickheads and needed to act their ages. We caused so much of a ruckus that I heard Mom's alarmed yelling from outside of the room as her footsteps came rushing up the stairs.**

**Angel was able to restrain Bobby in a full nelson and Jerry ripped Jack's claw-like grip off of Bobby before dragging the squirming boy a few feet away.**

"**Don't you ever touch me!" Jack's shouts were directed at Bobby, not Jerry who was struggling to keep a hold on him. "I'm not some kid that you or anyone else has to baby or pick up and hug. Those days are way over. Maybe I'm acting like I am because, for once in my life, I'm not thinking of what two rapists did to me and I'm a normal teenager."**

**Jack's words brought Bobby to a dead stop in Angel's arms.**

**Mom chose that moment to appear in the doorway. She spent a short moment scanning the damage done to the room, and then another checking to see if the five of us had been severely harmed.**

"**What in the world is going on up here?" Mom demanded an answer.**

"**Nothing good," Jerry muttered.**

**Jerry tightened his arms around the waist and chest of the skinny body of his youngest brother when Jack, who had yet to quit venting his feelings on Bobby, attempted to lunge at the target of his hatred.**

"**I'm acting like most sixteen-year-olds in our neighborhood act and you can't take it since I'm not that scrawny, weepy kid that used to follow you like some fucking shadow or obedient puppy," Jack said with a hint of pity in his voice, because he knew Bobby had needed him to revere him just like he had needed Bobby to protect him throughout the years.**

**Jack had been Bobby's little buddy since the day Jack first learned he could always count on Bobby. That wasn't true anymore.**

**After three tries, Jack got free from Jerry and stepped up to speak right in Bobby's face.**

**Bitter and simple, Jack said, "I'm not Sam. I don't need you like she does anymore. In my eyes, Jerry and Angel have pretty much replaced you."**

**I gaped, unable to believe my ears were working correctly. I couldn't have heard Jack right, could I? I felt like I was floating on a cloud. None of it seemed real.**

**Not sticking around for Bobby's reaction to what he'd just told him, Jack darted from the room.**

**Mom grabbed at his arm as he passed her and said, "Wait a minute, Jack."**

**Jack moved out of her reach and continued on his path for the stairs. Once Jack was out of sight, Angel released Bobby. It wasn't as if Bobby noticed. Our big brother looked like someone had just informed him that his best friend was dead. Of course, he tried to shake it off and play the tough guy as we all watched him in concern. But, it didn't work and we knew Jack had struck him right at the core.**

"**Bobby," Mom whispered, laying a consoling hand on his hair.**

"**Not now, Ma," Bobby murmured and brought her hand down to kiss it briefly. "Be right back."**

**Bobby stalked out of the room, his speed increasing when he hit the top of the stairs. It was clear what he was up to, so Jerry and Angel followed him to split up any other brawls that should arise.**

**Not a minute later, four loud and livid voices echoed from beneath me and Mom. Oh, yippee. The boys were at it again. Mom silently cursed, her gaze jerking between me and the stairs.**

"**Are you alright, Sammy baby?" she asked, making positive I hadn't been injured before she could rush downstairs and referee my brothers.**

**I gave a weak thumbs up.**

"**Yeah."**

**My answer was shortly followed by the slamming of a door and Mom rushed for the stairs to find out who had left.**

**I hopped down from my bed and moved to the window. Opening it, I climbed out onto the roof and lowered my gaze to the person below. Jack had shrugged into his leather jacket at some point and was now at a full-on run, face red with anger as he tore down the street with his long legs. Someone was fast on his tail and I recognized it to be Bobby, whose face was an even darker shade of pissed-off-red than Jack's. He was a few feet behind Jack and the distance separating them was growing, Jack totally having the advantage over Bobby when it came to running.**

**Bobby shouted between pants, "Jack, bring your fairy ass back here!"**

**Jack whirled around long enough for Bobby to see the two middle fingers he had flipped up for the man and then Jack was off again. When Jack disappeared five houses down from Bobby, that's when our oldest brother just gave up and stomped the ground like a toddler having a temper tantrum.**

**I smirked and swung my legs over the side of the roof, watching Bobby curse out Jerry and Angel for the heck of it on his way back into the house. If that was what happened after one day of Bobby being home, I feared to think of what other days might end up like. Craning my neck, I took a good look at mine and Jack's room through the window. I'd like to list out the details. But, to cut it short, the room was trashed and there was no hope for an easy repair.**

**I had to ask myself a question. Why was it always my room that got destroyed during the classic Mercer fights? I mean, come on! Those jerks loose their tempers and I'm the one who pays for it?**

**Fucking brothers. These were the times I wished I was an only child.**

(Well, that was an interesting chapter, was it not. There may not be a lot of tension between Sam and Bobby anymore. But, there's certainly going to be problems for Jack and Bobby. And, heads up, there is something going on with Jack that Bobby should know about. So, Bobby's big brother instincts are right on this one.)

For future chapters: Bobby works on finding out what is up with Jack and comes up with facts that make him fear for his brother, Jayla reveals a secret that might just make Sam give up on her forever, and someone from the Mercers' past returns.


	7. IMPORTANT NOTICE!

There will be no more updates from any of my stories for the next one or two months. I'll be taking that time to rewrite a few of my older stories to improve my current stories and plots. My writing style has changed so much since I first began at fanfiction and I need to fix my older work. A few new characters will be added and some storylines will change. So, when I do update, I suggest you re-read any stories I mark 'Rewritten'.

STORIES THAT WILL BE REWRITTEN:

**1: Forced Love In The Family**

**2: Forced Love In The Family 2**

**3: A Dangerous Life**

**4: Five Brothers**

**5: Five Brothers: A Look Into The Past**

**6: Five Brothers: A Look Into The Past – Part 2 (Both T Rated and Unrated Versions)**

Sorry about doing this to you guys. But, I personally feel it needs to be done. I've been tiptoeing around my own writing errors for too long and need to fix them. I hope you understand and like the new versions of the stories once I post them.


	8. Fans!

Hey, you guys. This is not an updated chapter. But, read it anyway or pay the price. Lol. Anyway, you all know I'm re-writing most of my stories. I'm about in the middle of each story now. So, before I finish, I'd love to know if you guys want to see anything happen in my stories or have any suggestions. I've been dying to let the fans have their say. So, send me an e-mail or review and I'll pick the ideas I like best to add to my stories. Trust that you will be credited for you help. I'm not into stealing people's creativity. Love you all. And hope to be back in the game by the beginning of the school year.


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